The river press. [volume] (Fort Benton, Mont.) 1880-current, 1887-06-22
THE RAILROAD RECORD.
The Surveyors are Flooded Out in Eight
Mile Cou1ee--The Manitoba Quotes
Low Rates to Fort Benton.
THE SURVEYORS FLOODED OUT.

Engineer Barclay and his party are put
/ ting in time running line for the pro-
| posed temporary track up the FeJoH. Il
SO happened that they reached the Eight
mile coulee on Tuesday and thar night
had an experience with the flood that
ought 70 thoroughly convince them that
/ it is not h very good place TO build a rail
road; not even 4 temporary one. While
! comfortably camped down towards the
4 foot of the coalee and up from the bottom
far enough, as they supposed, they were
suddenly aroused from their slum bers by
a roar and rush Of. waters that sounded as
if the Missouri river had changed its
channel and started down the coulee. The.
alarm was given and there was "hurrying
to and fro' of excited men. The tents
and baggage were quickly removed TO
higher ground, but they were too late to
save everything. Some of their property,
including one Of the instruments, went
down with the flood and was never seen
again. The men barely escaped with their
lives, and it is fortunate that we were not
given more distressing tale to tell. The
cause of this uproar was sudden rise in
the coulee, the water coming down in
volume from fifteen to twenty feet in per-
pendlcular height, sweeping everything
before it. No temporary grade, and no
permanent one, unless very expensive and
secure, could have withstood the food,
which came just in time to give the engi-
neers some valuable information. Floods
Of this kind are yearly occurrences in that
coulee, and in fact throughout the lower
Teton valley. The coulee drains basin
of many square miles and just such re-
suits are likely to follow any heavy rain
like that of Tuesday night. The Teton
valley below the mouth Of the coulee is
even worse for railroad construction. The
river is now out Of its banks and tearing
along like a mill dam, bat is not within
many feet of being as high as it has been
known to be at this season. In the spring
when the river gorges the valley is flooded
from bluff to bluff and no ordinary grade
or embankment could resist it. IF The
experience OF the engineers in Eight-mile
coulee is not sufficient they ought to inter
view some of the old timers in regard to
the capers the Teton.cuts at every break
up and during the June rise. All trouble
on this score can be avoided by adopting
the Griffith route for the temporary as
well as the permanent line. The citizens
of Benton will propose to the Manitoba
management to turn the Teton into the
Missouri at the on-du-Nez, at their
own expense, if necessary, and thus there
will be occasion for but one bridge
across that dangerous stream and this sin
gle point will then be the only one where
the railroad approaches the river or it's
valley. In this way the Manitoba will
save thousands of dollars in the construc-
ton of it's temporary line and it will be at
once the ''easiest and quickest route'' and
| by large majority the safest.
RATES TO BENTON.
One of our leading business firms is in
apolis g Manitoba from St. Paul to Fort
Benton, which are unexpectedly low and
satisfactory. The railroad will be COM
pleted to this city between the 18th and
2Oth Of August and the traffic manager is
already reaching out for business and
quoting rates to all points along the line
in Montana. The schedule is uniformly
low and favorable, showing that the Man
fn Ia +ha h.1c nP
whole country, and even draw from its |
formidable rival, the Northern Pacific. A
big reduction in cast bound freights, par
ticularly on wool, is also expected, and we |
hope TO be able TO announce the same soon. I
MR.. HOW THINKS BENTON Will NOT BE |
LEFT OUT.
representative of the RIVER Press
had a talk with Mr.. How, of St. Paul, to-
day, regarding the probable location of
the Manitoba railroad in this city. Mr..
How said that he had always been led to
believe it was the decided intention of Mr..
Hill to bring the Manitoba right into Fort
Benton, and that he had never heard any,
thing to the contrary until he heard of the
fears of the Benton people that they were
going to be left to one side. Mr. How
said that of course he did not pretend to
know what Mr.. Hill's intentions were at
the present time in view of the many en-
gineering difficulties that had been en- ,
conntered between the Coal Banks and ,
Great Falls, but he was satisfied that those !
difficulties would have to be almost insur- !
monnfable 10 keep the Manitoba out even }
with iI> temporary line. Mr. Eiili's inter- .
est in his great railroad rises far above any !,
personal considerations, and he would be J
the last man on earth to attempt 10 ad- !,
vance his own private enterprises at lie
expense OF tile railroad. lis not III Mr..
Hills calculations to leave the head of !
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